National security, terrorism concerns as FIFA World Cup 2026 matches begin in U.S.

By Bethany Blankley
The Center Square

As the FIFA World Cup 2026 tournament begins in roughly a dozen U.S. cities this week, law enforcement officials have been implementing national security measures.

Forty-eight teams are competing in the international competition from June 11 through July 19 in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. The U.S. has the greatest number of host cities. California and Texas have the most.

U.S. host cities include Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Seattle and the San Francisco Bay area.

The opening match in the U.S. begins in Los Angeles on Friday, where the U.S. faces Paraguay. Matches begin in New York/New Jersey and Massachusetts on Saturday and in Texas and Pennsylvania on Sunday. Host cities have issued travel advisories and security alerts as increased traffic and crime are expected.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security and the FBI have been implementing national security measures.

In Chicago, CBP officials questioned and detained Iraqi player Aymen Hussein when he arrived at O’Hare International Airport. After hours of questioning, he was ultimately allowed into the U.S. Iraq’s team photographer, Talal Salah, was denied entry. Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was also denied entry after arriving at Miami International Airport.

Iran’s players have been granted visas but 13 staff members were denied visas and entry as the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict continues and more Americans were just killed overseas.

The Lawfare Project argues additional security measures are needed. The U.S. nonprofit provides pro bono legal services to protect the civil and human rights of Jewish people worldwide. It’s urged the State Department to revoke the visa of British national Ibrahim Khadra, a beIN Sports journalist believed to be in the U.S. covering matches. It’s also urged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to begin removal proceedings.

“Khadra has spent years publicly glorifying Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists, praising specific attacks and operatives, and using sports media credentials and major stadiums as a platform for extremist messaging,” the Lawfare Project told The Center Square. Doing so violates the Immigration and Nationality Act’s U.S. terrorism-related inadmissibility and removability provisions, it explains.

“The World Cup is a national-security event, and the system is being tested in real time,”

Lawfare Project Senior Counsel Gerard Filitti told The Center Square in an interview. “We’ve already watched it play out: an Iraqi team photographer (Talal Salah) denied entry, a player (Aymen Hussein) questioned for seven hours, a Somali referee (Omar Abdulkadir Artan) detained and sent home, and Iranian staff refused visas after the administration warned it wouldn’t let the delegation ‘sneak terrorists in.’”

He also argues CBP’s vetting of World Cup participants “has a blind spot: the scrutiny keys on country of origin, and terrorism isn’t a passport. Ibrahim Khadra walked in on a British one, while his decade-long record of glorifying Hamas and Hezbollah, both designated terrorist organizations, sat in plain sight.”

He’s raising concerns as Islamic terrorism threats continue in the U.S. and Canada. In the past week, several young Muslim men in California, Kansas and New Jersey were charged with material support for terrorism, including support for ISIS, The Center Square reported.

Kansas City is hosting Algerian and Tunisian players from countries where terrorist cells are located. Los Angeles is hosting players from Iran and Bosnia and Herzegovina – countries with known terrorist ties where U.S. troops have died in conflicts. Players from Algeria, Jordan, Turkey and Qatar, home to the Muslim Brotherhood, are playing in the San Francisco Bay area.

In Toronto, Canada, another World Cup host city, an Islamic terrorist attack was thwarted after lax visa policies were implemented by the Trudeau administration, The Center Square reported. This is after more than 700 Iranian agents have been identified in Canada posing a national security threat and after U.S. Border Patrol have arrested more than 300 Iranians attempting illegal entry into the U.S. in the past year, The Center Square reported.

It’s also after the greatest number of known and suspected terrorists were identified and apprehended at the U.S.-Canada border and at least 18,000 suspected terrorists were released into the U.S. by the Biden administration, The Center Square reported.

The UK and Europe have also “produced and harbored plenty of terrorism,” Filitti said. “If we vet for nationality instead of conduct, we’re checking the wrong thing, and the people who know that are the ones who’ll exploit it. FIFA and the host cities have to put security ahead of optics. That’s why we’ve referred Khadra to the State Department and ICE – not for his nationality, but for a documented record that meets the standard Congress wrote.”

In the last 45 years, nearly 70,000 Islamic terrorist attacks have been committed worldwide. In recent years, Americans have been targeted attending concerts of pop stars Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande, The Center Square reported.

Multiple U.S. entertainers are performing at World Cup events, including U.S. pop icon Madonna at the final game at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

The FIFA World Cup 2026 tournament has sold more than five million tickets in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.